Sunday, January 03, 2010

"With little fanfare, Harold Spurling, 40, ended a nearly two-year prosecution of one of the largest child pornography cases in the state by pleading guilty to four counts of first-degree sexual assault and two counts of risk of injury to a minor.

Spurling is scheduled to be sentenced Feb. 28.

He faced dozens of sexual assault charges along with his roommate Jeffrey Brisson, 32, after investigators uncovered dozens of videos of their sexual exploits with children on their home computers.

“The agreement is that we are asking for 40 years to serve with a total 60 years including special parole,” said Assistant State’s Attorney Paul Rotiroti who prosecuted the cases against both men. “He has a right to argue for 25 years, but the remainder of the 60 years will be on special parole.”"

Spurling and Brisson were arrested in January 2008 after officers serving warrants for their longtime molestation of a teenage boy uncovered a child pornography stash that included videos of nearly a dozen area children.

The pair was found in their apartment with a 3-month-old girl who had been sexually assaulted by Brisson. Police also found a computer encrypting a video tape of Brisson molesting the child.

Brisson admitted during his sentencing in May he was a pedophile with a compulsion that can’t be stopped. He also likened society’s fear of pedophiles to long ago fears of African Americans or gays and lesbians and said all adults have thoughts of having sex with children.

Spurling stood quietly before New Britain Superior Court Judge Hillary Strackbein Friday in orange prison overalls and only spoke when asked a question. Spurling turned down a plea deal offered earlier in the case and was scheduled to go to trial.

Strackbein explained that he could have faced a maximum of 140 years in prison on just the handful of charges he pleaded guilty to Friday. “If you add up the maximum, it’s 140 years on these charges alone, and 30 of those years are mandatory due to the age of the victims,” Strackbein said. “The age of the victims became important when calculating the mandatory minimum. And it’s not a defense that they consented due to their age.”

The charges that Spurling admitted Friday involved videotaped sex acts with boys as young as 6 and 10, Rotiroti explained to the court as he read the allegations. Many of the parents of the children molested by the pair were friendly with Brisson and Spurling who offered free baby-sitting in their Washington Street apartment.

Like Brisson, the conditions of Spurling’s special parole will include lifetime registration on the state’s Sex Offender Registry and tight monitoring including stipulations on where he can live and work and random searches, Strackbein said.

With long prison sentences, we're hopeful that they will never walk free in society again.

"With little fanfare, Harold Spurling, 40, ended a nearly two-year prosecution of one of the largest child pornography cases in the state by pleading guilty to four counts of first-degree sexual assault and two counts of risk of injury to a minor.

Spurling is scheduled to be sentenced Feb. 28.

He faced dozens of sexual assault charges along with his roommate Jeffrey Brisson, 32, after investigators uncovered dozens of videos of their sexual exploits with children on their home computers.

“The agreement is that we are asking for 40 years to serve with a total 60 years including special parole,” said Assistant State’s Attorney Paul Rotiroti who prosecuted the cases against both men. “He has a right to argue for 25 years, but the remainder of the 60 years will be on special parole.”"

Spurling and Brisson were arrested in January 2008 after officers serving warrants for their longtime molestation of a teenage boy uncovered a child pornography stash that included videos of nearly a dozen area children.

The pair was found in their apartment with a 3-month-old girl who had been sexually assaulted by Brisson. Police also found a computer encrypting a video tape of Brisson molesting the child.

Brisson admitted during his sentencing in May he was a pedophile with a compulsion that can’t be stopped. He also likened society’s fear of pedophiles to long ago fears of African Americans or gays and lesbians and said all adults have thoughts of having sex with children.

Spurling stood quietly before New Britain Superior Court Judge Hillary Strackbein Friday in orange prison overalls and only spoke when asked a question. Spurling turned down a plea deal offered earlier in the case and was scheduled to go to trial.

Strackbein explained that he could have faced a maximum of 140 years in prison on just the handful of charges he pleaded guilty to Friday. “If you add up the maximum, it’s 140 years on these charges alone, and 30 of those years are mandatory due to the age of the victims,” Strackbein said. “The age of the victims became important when calculating the mandatory minimum. And it’s not a defense that they consented due to their age.”

The charges that Spurling admitted Friday involved videotaped sex acts with boys as young as 6 and 10, Rotiroti explained to the court as he read the allegations. Many of the parents of the children molested by the pair were friendly with Brisson and Spurling who offered free baby-sitting in their Washington Street apartment.

Like Brisson, the conditions of Spurling’s special parole will include lifetime registration on the state’s Sex Offender Registry and tight monitoring including stipulations on where he can live and work and random searches, Strackbein said.

With long prison sentences, we're hopeful that they will never walk free in society again.

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